Manufacture of starch.



lunw llll 1 PA'I E NTED DEC. 8, .1903.

' A. A. OSBORN.

MANUFACTURE OF STARGH.

APP LIOATION FILED SEPT. 10, 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

K0 MODEL.

Jm/mda Jar/91x PATENTEDDEC. 8, 1903.

A. A.- OSBORN.

MANUFACTURE OF STARGH.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 10, 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

H0 MODEL.

"WI "ml w E L UNITED STATES I Patented December 8, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

AMBROSE A. OSBORN, OF SAN-FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO CALIFORNIACEREAL COMPANY, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATIONOFCALIFORNIA. V

MANUFACTURE oF STARCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part a- Letters Patent No. 746,369, dated December8, 1903..

Application filed September 10, 1903. Serial No. 172,646. (Nospecimens.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, AMBROSE A. OSBORN, a citizen of the United States,residing in the city and county of San Francisco, State of California,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Manufacture ofStarch and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, andexact description of the same.

My invention relates to the art of manufacturing starch mechanically;and it consists in the novel process and in several of the stepsthereof, which I shall hereinafter fully describe.

The object of my process is generally to quicken the process and improvethe output both in quantity and quality. These objects are attained attwo well-defined steps in the process-namely, in the production of thestarch-milk and its separation from the glue ten and in the drying ofthe starch, whereby a starch more nearly anhydrous than is common isproduced. 7

Referring to the accompanying drawings,

which serve to illustrate my process, Figure l is an elevationof anassembled apparatus, portions of which are broken away to more clearlyshow the character of the several parts. Fig. 2 is a plan of same. i

In thus illustrating an apparatus in which my process is carried out itmust be understood that the assemblage of the several parts in themanner shown is merely for the purpose of illustration. ferentlyrelatively located, and several minor connections may be employed andthe power applied variously without afiecting my process, which remainsthe same in its sequence of steps irrespective of the details ofconstrue tion and arrangement of the apparatus. With this understandingI will first describe the apparatus'shown in the drawings.

On the top floor A is a hopper B to receive the flour. From this hopperextends a screw conveyor 0 to an elevator D, the dischargespout d ofwhich is in communication with the dough-mixer E. This mixer may be ofany well-known pattern. I have here indicated it as havinga mixing-shafte and an end discharge 6'.

These parts may be dif-v F is a Water-tank indicating any suitablewater-supply. A pipe f leads from this tank to the mixer, as shown.Under thedischarge of the mixer is a bin G to receive the dough.

Below this bin is the washer H. This washer is in the shape re rotatingchurn comprising a barrel h, mounted upon end gudgeons h and havingwithin it rolls'h to which individual axial motion is imparted throughgears (indicated at h by the rotation of the barrel on its own axis, allafter the manner of rotary churns of this kind. The barrel has a door72. and some plugged holes 72. One of the gudgeons h is hollow, as shownin Fig. 1, and into it a branch f from a pipe f from tank F enters. Fromthis gudgeon extends into the barrel a sprinkler-pipe h". Below thewasher is a chute I, leading to a bin .I.

Passing to the next floor A there are settlers Kr These may be in anysuitable number. I have hereshown two, one of which is broken away toshow a'rotary stirrer it within, each settler being provided with'stirrers.

'Water is supplied to the settlers by a pipe f from a branch f of pipe fHoles In in the lower portion of the settlers enable the lower contentsto be drawn off. Below the settlers is'a trough L, which leads to ahopper M, adapted to discharge into a centrifugafl separator N, locatedin the basement A This separator may be of any usual type adapted forthe purpose.

In the basement is located the drier O.

This consists of a casing in which the trays P are mounted in tiers insuch a manner as to leave a zigzag passage for air, as is indicated inFig.1 by the arrows. p

Q is a fan connected on its suction side by a pipe q with a coolervesselR, having an airinlet pipe 7'. In this vessel is located a coolingor refrigerator coil S. The discharge end of the fan Q communicates by apipe q with thebase of the .drier', and in said base is located aheater-pipe T. 1' 1 U is a motor which, as indicated, drives by a belt ua shaft V. 'From this shaft a belt 0 I through trough Ljto hopper M, andby the lat-.

ions 10 control and drive the stirrers k of the settlers K, and a belt ndrives the separator N.

In this apparatus the process carried out is as follows: Flour insuitable quantities is fed to the hopper B and by the screw conveyer Cis carried to the elevator D, by which it is raised to and delivered tothe mixer E. Water from pipe f is also delivered to the mixer. In thismixer the water and flour are thoroughly commingled into a paste ordough, which is delivered from the discharge 6 of the mixer to the binG. At proper times this dough is placed by shoveling or otherwise intothe barrel of: the-washer H- through the door h When the barrel ischarged, the door is closed and the barrel is rotated, and duringrotation water is supplied to the barrel from the sprinkler-pipe N,which sprays it upon the dough. The rolls 71 in the bari rel, rotatingon their own axes,press the dough between them, and this action,together with the agitation of the rotation of the barrel and action ofthe sprinkling water, squeezes and washes out the starch, separating thedough into' starch-mil'k and gluten. The churning and spr'ayingaction towhich thetiough is thus 1 subjected is particularly efficient inbursting the walls of the vegetable-cells to liberate the starchgranules and wash them out free of! other associated cell contents. Withcereals; generally, and especially with wheat, where the glutenforms alarge proportion, this comparatively severe churning or squeezing actionis necessary,an'd by the'constant spraying, of the water the liberatedstarch granules are. washed out of the cells and pass offin the milkymixture in suspension,'leav'ing theglut'en, insignificant proportiononly of which passes off with the starch. The starchmilk is dis-.

charged from the share or washerH through,

the holes h and over the chute I into the 'bin} J. From this bin it istaken by any suitable means, as by channels or pumps (not shown) to thesettlers K. When a charge'fis' in the. settlers and a proper timeelapses to effect a settling of the heavier starch material to the.bottom, the upper water is drawn off, and} clear water' is added frompipe ff an'd the! stirrers k are set in operation to stir up-thel massthoroughly, after which a second"settling is allowedt'o takeplace.Finally after] a period of settling the upperwater drawn off and thethick starch material is discharged through the holes "10. The starchnow passesf ter is delivered to the separator Nail- In the separator"the starch is freed of its water, be-. ing thrown to the walls ofthe'sepa'rator and plastered thereon. From this it is cut in cakes andplaced in trays, which are then put into the drier OI I'nfth'is drieritis subjected to the action'fof air, which air is first cooled by therefrigerator-coil S and is then warmed by the heating-pipe T. Thispreliminary cooling of the air I have found of importance in that itappears to render said air more absorbent of moisture. In fact I havefound that the cold air, even without a subsequent heating, actsefficientlybut more slowly in taking the moisture from the starch; butwith a su bsequent heating the air acts rapidly in divesting the starchof its moisture. When the drying is complete, the starch is ready forthe market, and in practice I have found that it is most efiectuallydehydrated, being a nearly anhydrous product, much to be desired.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desiretosecure by Letters Patent, isp 1. That step in the process ofmanufacturing starch which consists in squeezing the dough duringrevolving agitation and simultaneous water-spraying.

2. Aprocessof manutacturingstarclnwhich consists in mixing the flourwith water to form a dough, subjecting the dough to a re volvi'ngagitation during water-spraying to separate the starch-milk from thegluten,set tling the starch-milk, separating the starch, after settling,from the remaining water, and finally drying said starch.

3. 'A process of manufacturingstarch,which consists in mixing the flourwith water. to form a'dough, squeezing the dough during rev'olvingagitation -and simultaneous waterspraying to separate the starch-milkfrom the gluten, settling the starch-milk, separating the starch, aftersettling, from the remaining water, and finally drying said starch.

' 4. The process of manufacturing starch, which consistsin mixing theflour with water to form a dough, squeezing the doughduring revolvingagitation and simultaneous watersprayin'g to separate the starch-milkfrom the gluten, settling the starch-milk, separating the starch, aftersettling, frotn theremaining 'water, and finally d rying said starch bymeans of air which has been previously cooled.

5. The process of manufacturing starch,

which consists in mixing the tion I with water to fiorm a dough,squeezing the dough d uring revolving agitation and simultaneouswaterspraying,'to separate the starch-milk from thegluten, settling thestarch-milk,separat- '1n'g the starch, aftersettling, froui theremaining water, and finallydrying said starch by means of air firstcooled and then heated,

prior to its action on the starch.

